The Takeaway: Would Hamas complicate US plans for reset with Palestinians? Also: the back story on the spat between Israel and Jordan; Gulf post-COVID economic trends; Turkey’s Kurds; Egypt and Somalia; and more! Originals
Egypt sentences activist Sanaa Seif to 18 months in prison Seif, who had been in pretrial detention since June, was convicted Wednesday of spreading false news and misusing social media. Egypt
Ukraine rejects Iran's final report on downed passenger plane The Iranian government said last year's shooting down of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was the result of a human error. Iran
Palestinians receive first batch of vaccines through COVAX More than 60,000 doses of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines arrived in Ramallah on Wednesday. Palestine
Why this Palestinian poet still sparks controversy in Israel For many Israelis, Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish is the symbol of Palestinian resistance and struggle, who, even after his death, keeps raising strong emotions among Israelis across the political spectrum. Palestine
How Egyptian 4-year-old faced life sentence Faulty record-keeping in Egypt's military court system could have landed a little boy in jail. Egypt
Is Israeli media changing its tone on sexual harassment? Contrary to past cases of famous Israeli figures suspected of sexual harassment, in the case of Brig. Gen. Ofek Buchris, both the media and social networks are in no hurry to declare that Buchris is guilty. Israel
Qasem Soleimani defends Hezbollah In a rare speech, the head of Iran's Quds Force defended his country against accusations that it might be looking for trouble in the region. Saudi Arabia
Will Hamas lose Gaza? Fatah officials have recently threatened to retake Gaza by force, which Hamas leaders see as a step that undermines reconciliation efforts. Palestine
Internal strife heats up in Turkey’s ruling party Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s fury at the release of two prominent journalists could be only the tip of the iceberg in a simmering power struggle. Turkey
The intifada of attrition Unlike the first two intifadas, the current uprising appears unlikely to lead to political breakthroughs or the rise of a new Palestinian leadership. Palestine
Will Egyptians open their wallet to help Cairo get out of debt? Egypt's president seems to think that millions of citizens donating 13 cents a day can boost Egypt’s dire economic situation — or at least boost his image. Egypt
Why Bibi snubbed Obama and is skipping next week's AIPAC conference Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to cancel his US trip so that he could avoid meeting with both President Barack Obama and the US Jewish community. Israel
Literary world celebrates Palestinian poet's 75th birthday The Palestinian cause is omnipresent in the minds of Arab and world peoples thanks to renowned poet Mahmoud Darwish, whose work is still widely appreciated seven years after his death. Palestine
Why Turks are skipping banks and keeping their gold at home Turkish banks hope to retrieve 5,000 tons of gold that Turkish citizens have accumulated since World War I, and return it to the economy. Turkey
How this Kurdish agency breaks news, taboos The journalists of Turkey’s only all-female media outlet, the Kurdish agency JINHA, challenge male dominance in both their society and their profession, braving the harsh realities of a war-torn region. Turkey
